For 80 years, Loveland has turned its name into a Valentine’s Day tradition

For the past 80 years, Valentine’s Day cards from around the world have made a detour through Loveland, Colorado.

Each year, people mail their cards to the city’s post office, where volunteers add a special Valentine’s verse. The envelopes are then stamped with the official Loveland postmark before being sent on to their final destinations. People can also select a specially designed Valentine’s Day card from Loveland to send to their special someone.

Dixie Daley of the Loveland Chamber of Commerce said the tradition dates to 1946, when it was created by Ted Maple, then president of the chamber.

“The love he showed us to have, we continued it in his honor and we’re, just so excited to have so much involvement in this,” she said.

In early February, a group of volunteers gathered at the chamber to learn how to stamp incoming Valentine’s envelopes with the special commemorative stamps from Loveland.

“On the right side of the Valentine, that’s the only thing that’s gonna cross the stamp,” Daley instructs.

Kicking off the proceedings was Ellory Anne Bauersfeld, the current Miss Loveland Valentine.

“I am here doing the stamping and I got to do the first official stamp this year,” she said.

The 18-year-old high school senior stamped cards from Israel, Australia, Ireland and Japan.

“ I love that we’re able to spread love,” she said.

About 150 volunteers keep the tradition going each year, stamping and sorting the Valentines. But Daley said there are other ways people can get involved.

“ Every year we have a new stamp and a new card. So we put out a call out to people to write a poem, and then we decide the poem as a team and they select it,” she said.

“In the Sweetheart City, joy takes flight, 80 years of love, shining bright” is this year’s selected verse. It is stamped on Valentines that pass through the city ahead of Feb. 14.

Despite the rise of digital communication, Daley said people still want to send something tangible.

“ We stamp over 100,000 Valentine’s and we do thousands online, which is a good sign that people still love sending mail and sending love,” she said.

As the city celebrates the 80th anniversary of the program, Daley said it is a reminder that love is something that connects people.

“It’s just really important, especially now where people are having so much going on in the world. If we could just share a little love, it will change your mind, it will change your heart set.”

Copyright 2026 Rocky Mountain Community Radio. This story was shared via Rocky Mountain Community Radio, a network of public media stations in Colorado, Wyoming, Utah, and New Mexico, including KGNU.